This is a lot of walking but Paris is the easiest city in the world for walking. If you are not too tired from your trip to Paris, it is possible. You might pick up a carnet or other pass for the Metro in case you want to do part of the ininerary on the Metro. Candidates would be either Eiffel Tower to Arc or Notre Dame to your dinner destination. Of course, you will want to stop for refreshments at several cafes along the way!

Hi HH,

I suggest the Metro or bus from the Tower to the Arc.

The rest of the walk is good.

You might also think of dinner on the Ile St Louis.

There is an Amorino Gelato shop at 47 rue St. Louis en L'Ile.

Look at the map - it is about 1 1/2-1 3/4 miles from the Arc to the Louvre. That should give you an idea...
I do like walking and getting outdoors on the first day, can't concentrate on anything 'serious' like museums...

I guess it depends on what kind of shape you are in. I am a middle aged woman in average shape and I can do it easily. I walk that far and much further in Paris. Of course the metro is wonderful and I take it alot but what you just described is a wonderful first day walk. I say it is definitly walkable unless you have some kind of physical problem.

Thanks for the tips. Since time is also a factor - we don't want any unneccesary walking even though we love walking. I think the metro in the suggested areas sounds like a good plan.

We are staying near Invalides, and so the other option would be to do the walk the other way around - starting in the Lating Quarter and going around. This wat we can see the Eiffel Tower lit up at night? Any suggestions of the best self guided walking tour?

isabel - we are in our mid-20s and in good shape - but nonetheless, jetlag will be a factor and we definitely didn't want to wear ourselves out on the very first day of our vacation. And anxious as we are - we want to see as much as possible so don't want to waste time on the "not so grand" parts of our propsed walking tour! thanks for the info!

I could do the walk and I've got a few (just a few) years on you!
And keep in mind that taking the Metro doesn't always reduce the amount of walking a person does in Paris... sometimes you end up walking more in the stations than if you'd just hoofed above ground.
ira's suggestion, though, is a good one for reducing a bit of the hike, esp. if you're anticipating being worn out from jet lag.

By the way, we enjoy eating at Brasserie Ecole Militaire. It's comfortable/casual - you can choose from the carte what you want, rather than being obligated to follow the 3-course thing. We've had mussels, pan-fried trout, "salade supreme", and desserts (not all at the same meal!). I will say you may not get quite the same attention as do the regulars, but they will serve you. Also, I learned that French restaurants serve your plate when it is ready, not necessarily when your partner's is ready, so don't be put off by your meals arriving at different times. This happened here but I didn't understand it until later. The food is good; our bill for both averages 30-35Euro.

hawaii:

I do walks that far and farther all the time in Paris, and I'm in my 50s. I find staying outside and keeping moving is the best antidote to fatigue. A lot will depend on the weather and how jet lag affects you, though. I'd familiarize yourself with the métro so that if you encounter a sudden downpour or suddenly get very tired you can at least ride part of the way. Don't forget about the Paris buses, too. It's a fairly extensive system, and you can enjoy the sights of Paris from the windows, unlike on the métro.

I've walked from the Louvre to the Arc. Fairly easy walk. Especially if you dawdle along the Champs Elysees. Took the subway from the Arc to the Eiffel Tower. Walked from the Tower to Les Invalides, then along the Seine all the way to Notre Dame. Do not remember being tired at any point along the way. Took a couple of hours as we stopped at looked at things enroute. Especially the art being sold by the "starving artists".

Plan for that much walking, and if you feel tired, just take the metro, bus, or cab. It's no big deal if you take a break.

It sounds like a perfectly lovely walk. Paris is such a walkable city (the absence of hills except around Montmartre makes it a lot easier), and it is best seen on foot. Best of all, when you do feel a bit tired, there is *always* a sidewalk cafe nearby where you can sit, restore yourself with an ice cream or a coffee or a beer, and enjoy Paris parading before your eyes.

If you're concerned about jet lag, save this itinerary for your second day!

This is easily doable, although the Champs Elysees is a boring thoroughfare without the local shops and cafes and the occasional churches, squares, and open-air markets that you'll find in other areas, especially on the Left Bank and the Marais. I'd take a bus from the Arc de Triomphe to the Place de Concorde, then walk through the Tuilleries and on to Notre Dame and across to the Latin Quarter, then back to your hotel after dinner. Random walks through neighborhoods can be one of the high points of a trip to Paris. You easily come across fascinating places and people and have the pleasure of gettting to know the city firsthand.

well said - joe in silver spring! our thoughts exactly. the best way to feel/experience the culture of a country is to walk, meet people, get lost in the city, tast the foods, etc. And since we are not museum people - it gives us more time to walk!! Why go to a foreign country and be stuck indoors in a museum - we can do that here in NYC. I know I know, its not the same - but looking at art, statues, and being stuck inside in a crowded museum in not my idea of travelling around the world.

..my favorite walk is from the eiffel tower overtoward the quai d'orsay museum..down rue du bac to st germain to the latin quarter...i do it almost every late afternoon on my first day in paris (actually in reverse order)..i find i am able to stretch after the trip...it is easily doable..another favorite walk is across the bridge near rue du back through the tuilleries to the louvre..the champs elysee is my least favorite walk..but id do that louvre to tuilleries to concord to champs elysee...what i am really saying is that there are 2 good walks..oh i am a lady "of middle age" and have not problems with any walk...except if it is pouring or sleeting..i then head underground.

I adore walking in Paris...and getting lost...and "Bonjour Madam/Messr. in shops and look around (just don't touch...its not polite) Then I take a breather in a cafe or terrace. I wish that where I live the city was like that... You can do it! If you're like me, the excitement adrenalin rush from being IN PARIS keeps me going until 9'ish or so at night. I had a startlingly lovely view of the Eiffel Tower lighting up from the Pont Neuf one night...its a moment I'll never forget! But people say that the Trocadero is good for a view of the lit tower, as well.

I'm not in the very best of shape - do a fair bit of walking but almost no strenuous exercise, and I could easily do that walk. In fact I seldom take the metro in Paris except for longer distances or in bad weather - most places are very walkable.

But the walk down the Champs Elysees would be pretty crowded and there isn't that much to see.

I'd walk from The Eiffel Tower to Place de la concorde and then along the route you planned.

Rather than a bus from the Eiffel Tower, take a cab to Etoile. On the Champs Elysees, you can shorten the walk to Concorde by taking the 73 bus [4 stops to choose from]. There are much nicer places to walk further on.

At the Louvre, I like to walk past the pyramid, into the next courtyard and then right to the Pont des Arts, the little pedestrian footbridge below the Ile de La Cite. Great views from there. Then proceed up the quay and cross over to Notre Dame.

We walked from Notre Dame along the Seine to the Champs Elysees to our hotel near the Arc after being on our feet for hours. It was rough and we are in pretty good shape. You may want to go to the Arc in the late afternoon (in Paris it isn't dark during the summer until 10-10:30 PM), walk down the Champs to Concorde then walk across Pont Alexandre around Les Invalides and have dinner at Le Maupertu while the sun is setting over the golden dome. From there walk over to L'Ecole Militaire (10 minute walk) as it gets dark and along the Champs de Mars for a beautiful view of the Eiffel Tower lit. At 10 minutes to the hour from dark until about 1AM, the lights flash and twinkle for about 10-15 minutes. From there you can take the Trocadero metro back to your hotel.

This walk is very easily doable (from someone who has plenty of years on you) assuming two things:

You are already walkers and enjoy it (we do long walks - 3/4 city miles - almost every sunday after lunch)

You have really comfy broken in shoes (that you have alredy walked this far in - not just comfy for the mall)

I have gone to Paris, France in 2002. It is very easy to walk from place to place. Look on a map and make sure you go in order so you don't have to back track your way. Once you get to your final destination you might want to take the Metro back. If you like to walk and can handle it, I would suggest it because it is very beautiful in Paris. If you need a break the metros are all over the place. The Metros have a map in the inside cars and can take you place to place.

If you really like hot dogs I would suggest trying one over there. The hot dogs in Paris are wonderful. They use a big long bread and use a spike to make a center hole for the hot dog, then they drop it in. The mustard sauce is to die for!!! It is very yummy and a fast lunch. You will find most hotdog stands in or around the parks.

I would also suggest going in the Louvre. The Mona Lisa and the other paintings are really nice to look at. Word to the wise... Say hello in French first then ask if they speak english. All most of all people there can speak english but won't if you dont say hello in French... some french people dont like americans.

For Notre Dame, if you go to chruch I would also suggest going to service one day there. I went to 2-3 services while I was there and its amazing. If you are thinking about doing that get there pently of time before mass starts because seats fill up fast.

The Arc de Triomphe. There is actually TWO of them. They have the newer one and an older one. The one where the Le Tour de france is held is the new one (champs elysees). You can actually walk up the arc de triomphe (it doesnt cost much) it was sprial stairs and once you get to the top its really interesting to look down.

My only thing is you might want to do this the second day of your trip because you will be jet legged. When I arrived in Paris it was suppose to be night time where I came from (twin cities) and it was day there.

I think your days adventure is totally doable on foot. HAVE FUN & good luck!
Sorry for the novel.. I could go on and on. If you want to know more or ask me some questions feel free to email me at giggles3406@yahoo.com

I agree with ira--do the walk from the Arc down the champs, but definitely take the metro from the Eiffel tower to the Arc. I did this very walk a few years ago with my brother, who is/was out of shape and portly. He did accuse me of conspiring with his wife to make him walk his @** off, but other than that it was nice.

I was 28 and my wife 26 when we took our first trip to Europe by railpass.
When we'd get to a city or town, we walked everywhere, never used a taxi, but did use the public transportation only occasionally.
We walked everywhere in places like Paris, Munich, Rome, and Florence.
Plan your walking tour to meander from one end of the city to the other, then take the subway back to the hotel at the end of the day.

I've done this walk. It's a day trip and tough. Connect via metro where possible.

hawaii - I would liken the walk from the Louvre to Arc de Triomphe aboutlie from Port Authority to the Met. I think it took me about 45 minutes to make the walk in April, tho I agree with Joe it's a little dull, there are more interesting walks. I did the walk you described all in one day, minus Latin Quarter at the end. I had missed the Arc last year, and on the way back I stopped at a cafe for an entrecote frites and a 1664 beef. Lunch prices at cafes along the Champs Elysee were surprisingly reasonable and of course the people-watching is fine.

First, let me clarify something. I'm assuming "first day in Paris" means your first FULL day, not your day of arrival. Use your day of arrival to orient yourself to the neighborhood around your hotel and/or only see one major site.

That said, if it were my 1st full day in Paris, AND it was my honeymoon, AND I were staying at Invalides...this is what I would do.

Start out toward the Seine and cross Pont Alexander III. Approach Champs Elysees at the Grande Palais/Petit Palais grounds. You'll have great views of the Eiffel Tower throughout this walk. (We were totally uninspired by our LONG walk all the way down Champs Elysees---totally boring.) You'll see the Arc in the distance--visit it another day if you have time.

Stroll the short distance to Place de la Concorde, thru the Jardin des Tuileries and up to the Louvre. Cross Pont Neuf to the Ile de la Cite. (At Pont Neuf, buy tickets for sunset river cruise...http://www.vedettesdupontneuf.com/va/index.htm.) By now you'll be more than ready for lunch and a rest at one of the nearby cafes.

Spend the afternoon wandering through the Iles and/or seeing Notre Dame. Pick up some cold champagne for your romantic sunset cruise.

After the cruise, have dinner and then decide whether you want to walk or taxi back to the hotel. The walk back to Les Invalide along the Seine would be beautiful at night, with the Tour Eiffel and the golden dome of the Invalides in front of you.

Sigh. Can you tell I'm jealous?!

I meant to add: On a sunny day, you could do Musee Rodin in the morning--it's right near Invalides. Then have a picnic at Champs de Mars under the Eiffel Tower and go up the tower after lunch.

We have done this walk, and with children. It is no problem. Just take your time to see things you happen upon and enjoy yourself

I have walked that route and more in a single day in Paris -- often. Sure it's doable.
One day this last trip we started at our place on St. Germaine in the 6th right by Rue de Seine, walked to the Eiffel Tower, then Arc, down Champs Elysees, curving over to St. Honore, then to Marais. We walked down and across St. Louis, then across to Latin Quarter and up to Luxembourg Gardens, then returned to our place on St. Germaine -- considerably more than you're talking about. By the way, we were back in our apartment around 5 or 6, rested and then walked up near the Pantheon for dinner and back.

thanks for ALL the reponses! WOW! to clear up some of the misconceptions - no its NOT our honeymoon - that was last year in Hawaii - it is just my username. And by 1st day - yes i do mean day or arrival. i know i know - what are we thinking?

well we arrive pretty early and have been waiting months and months for this trip. I think the excitement alone will keep us going the whole day! Hopefully. Its not a big deal - this is just a plan. And if we dont get to do it all in one day - we have the following day to make up for it. I just wanted to get some feedback regarding how strenuous the walk can be. But coming from the New York region - we are definitely used to walking everywhere. Thanks again!

Thanks for clearing that up. Yes, I think you can do it even on your arrival day. Visiting museums on that first day leave me more bleary eyed than anything. But walking keeps me awake and able to retire early in the evening and avoid the jet lag the second day. I think your plan is good, especially if you mean "walk through the Louvre area", not visit the Louvre museum.

We did a similar, but longer walk, in one day. We stopped a few times to rest and people watch. We started at the tower, then walked to the Marmotan museum (I would guess we spent three hours there; it was wonderful), then to the arc (we didn't go in) then down the champs Elysee (we lunched at one of the restaurants there, more for the view than the food, which was less expensive than I had anticipated) through the place de Concorde and the Jardin de Tuileries and the carousel, then along the Right bank to the Hotel de la Cite, then north to our apartment in the Marais. It was a full day, but very interesting. I would suggest you try to return to the arc some evening to see the lights.

Walking from the Eiffel Tower to the Arc, then down the Champs Elysees to the Louvre and then over to Notre Dame is very doable. Unless you linger for a long time in each area, you should have no problem beginning at the Tower in the morning and ending with dinner in the Latin Quarter.